The SPAR application is the University of Pittsburgh-developed labor distribution system and is fully integrated with PRISM Human Resources, Payroll, and Research Proposal and Accounting applications. Effort percentages representing the various work activities (teaching, sponsored research, public service, administration, etc.) of each salaried employee are entered on the individual’s SPAR. These percentages serve as the basis for University payroll distribution and for effort certification on federal sponsored awards.

System Availability Notice

Maintenance is performed on the SPAR application according to the schedule below. During these times, SPAR users will have access to all inquiry functions and view-only access to the online SPAR form. Users will not be able to modify SPARs during these maintenance periods.

  • Nightly from 9:30 p.m. until midnight to accommodate daily processing and updates to related applications.
  • On the third Friday of each month, from 12:00 midnight (Thursday) until 11:00 a.m. Friday to allow for additional Payroll processing.
  • During the month-end closing processes, beginning at 5:00 p.m. on the 2nd working day of each month until 6:00 a.m. on the 5th working day of each month. The closing process for the last month of an academic period (April, August, December) may require an additional day to create SPARs for the new period. For these month-end closings, the SPAR application may not reopen until the 6th working day of the new month.
  • Non-routine system maintenance will be performed as required and may result in unscheduled SPAR application restrictions.